Loveland city councilors close in on drilling rules

Stage set for three rounds of public hearings

With petroleum industry representatives and anti-fracking activists looking on, Loveland city councilors heard the latest from the city team crafting regulations on drilling within the city.

The guests were not afforded the opportunity to speak at the Tuesday night study session, but facial expressions, body language and the occasional soft "hiss" indicated what might be in store when public hearing commence during the next month.

Development service director Greg George and City Attorney John Duval, the pair who have worked since August on a document setting forth a framework for petroleum development, offered their latest draft.

Members of a new-to-the-stage grassroots group called Frack-Free Loveland seemed uncomfortable with the city's consulting relationship with oil giant Anadarko Petroleum Corp., as described by George and Duval.

Hearings Scheduled

Public hearings on Loveland's proposed regulations for oil and natural gas development within the city begin later in February and continue through March. All will be conducted in City Hall's Council Chamber.

City councilors have set their first reading of the ordinance for 6:30 p.m. March 5.

Assuming the measure moves forward, another opportunity for public comment will be at the council meeting at 6:30 p.m. March 19.

Several councilors also raised the question.

"Is it a wise thing to develop a set of regulations based on discussions with a single private company?" councilor Dave Clark asked.

City, State Aligned

The regulations that council members reviewed generally follow those set by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, the state agency tasked with regulating the industry and whose rules supercede most local controls.

But Loveland's strategy also involves incentives for producers to agree to enhanced standards, well beyond the ones enacted by the state, with the promise of expedited review offered as a carrot.

Anadarko, the only petroleum producer that has indicated it will seek drilling permits within Loveland, has been a close collaborator in the process.

Councilor Chauncey Taylor made note of the fact, too.

"Most of the feedback you've gotten has been from Anadarko," he said. "Are you concerned about pushback from other operators?"

Duval acknowledged the company's role in reviewing the work he and George had done, mostly on drafting the enhanced regulations that the industry would find "economically feasible and technically practical" as they undertake exploration and production.

Awaiting Review

And he said the collaboration would continue.

"We are awaiting for reaction from (Anadarko) to see what other changes we may have to make," Duval said, eliciting audible groans from some among the small Frack-Free contingent.

Councilor Daryle Klassen said his colleagues should be mindful of actions taken by other cities in the region, notably Longmont, whose voters enacted a ban on hydraulic fracturing, and Fort Collins, where a council majority seems poised to do the same.

He suggested that Loveland's development review process, even without voter or council action on prohibiting fracking, could set the stage for virtually shutting down oil and gas permits.

"It seems very lenient," he said, referring to an appeal process that could continue "ad infinitum."

"As they say, justice delayed is justice denied," Klassen said. "In this case, a permit delayed is a permit denied."